Pune: A sub-adult Indian gaur (Indian bison) was successfully rescued in a two-and-a-half-hour rescue operation on Tuesday after it was trapped between two large water supply pipelines near Vishranti Nagar on Canal Road in Hingne Khurd along Sinhagad Road. The rescue operation was jointly carried out by the forest department, Pune fire brigade, Pune police, Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), and forest department’s NGO partner, RESQ Charitable Trust.Trapped between water pipes, gaur rescued in dramatic multi-agency operation on Sinhagad RoadForest officials said they received a call at 11:52 am from local residents reporting that a cow had fallen between two enclosed water pipelines near New Canal Road. A forest and RESQ team rushed to the spot, where they discovered the animal was actually a wild gaur, tightly wedged between two massive pipelines, which made the rescue operation highly challenging.Firefighters from the Sinhagad Road Fire Station also reached the spot, where they, along with forest officials, veterinary experts, police personnel, PMC staff and RESQ volunteers jointly assessed the situation.As part of the rescue operation, the team carefully passed two ropes and a rescue harness beneath the animal. A veterinarian accompanying the team then administered a tranquiliser to safely sedate the gaur and minimise the risk of injury during the rescue.Speaking about the operation, Manoj Barbole, Range Forest Officer, Pune Forest Department, said, “The incident occurred at the foothill, and we believe the animal slipped on the grass before falling between the two pipelines. It appears to have entered the area during the early morning hours. When our team reached the spot, the gaur was in extreme distress and trying to injure itself because it was panicking due to the surrounding noise. To ensure a safe rescue, our veterinary expert tranquilised the animal. Two attempts were made to fully sedate the animal. The rescue was completed successfully because of the swift coordination among all the departments involved.”After the gaur was sedated, rescuers, assisted by firefighters and a crane brought to the site, carefully lifted it using ropes and the rescue harness and safely pulled it out of the gap.The gaur was then shifted to a forest rescue vehicle for medical examination and treatment. Forest officials said the gaur will remain under observation at the department’s Transit Treatment Centre in Bavdhan before being released back into its natural habitat once declared fit.A senior forest official said the gaur may have wandered into the area either from the Sinhagad forest region or the Velhe side, where its presence was recorded previously. Forest officials will now investigate the route the animal took before entering the urban locality.Deputy Conservator of Forests Abhijit Vaykos said that the swift response and teamwork ensured the gaur was rescued safely without sustaining any major injuries.However, the incident once again highlights the increasing movement of wild animals into urban areas bordering forest landscapes and underscores the importance of rapid coordination among multiple agencies when responding to such emergencies.